


shot through the heart

by pratintraining



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Banter, Canon Compliant, Flirting, Fluff, Getting Together, Holding Hands, Laser Tag, M/M, Post-Time Skip, Sappy, Sappy Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-11
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-17 20:20:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29971755
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pratintraining/pseuds/pratintraining
Summary: Kuroo and Yaku team up and play lasertag with a few olympic athletes and half a class of sixth graders. They do pretty all right.Rated T for swears.
Relationships: Kuroo Tetsurou/Yaku Morisuke
Kudos: 26





	shot through the heart

**Author's Note:**

> aside from waiting your turn, the actual gearing up and going into the arena takes like three minutes but i made it take forever so kuroo and yaku could flirt more lol. also, im not sure how well u can actually see someone blush under blacklight but just run with it? lastly, i havent played lasertag in over a decade but, well. 🤷🏻♀️
> 
> title is from "you give love a bad name" by bon jovi

Kuroo Tetsurou is a grown-ass man. He's twenty seven, over six feet, has an actual well-paying job at the Japanese Volleyball Association. He's been over the drinking age for a while now and he even has his own apartment.

He is also currently strapping into a lasertag vest with glee to rival a six year old.

"We're grown-ass fucking men," grumbles Yaku beside him, audible over the general hubbub that is the lasertag waiting area. Kuroo somehow manages to hear his grumbling over the loud conversation that always follows Bokuto, Hinata, Atsumu and anyone hanging around them. "Why did we, professional olympic athletes, decide on playing lasertag?"

They were just a small group, the louder bunch of them that'd known each other since high school. All of the monster generation party were gonna take over a pub later that night, meeting with their old teams and everything, but for the day, they'd split up to catch up in smaller groups. This one consisted of himself, Bo, Hinata, Atsumu, Aran and Yaku. The perfect size to play lasertag.

"Aw, it'll be fun Yakkun." Kuroo nudges his long-time friend's shoulder with his own shoulder--well, with his elbow. Kuroo's shoulder is too high to properly nudge Yaku's without Kuroo awkwardly leaning down. Actually that might be a hilarious way to insult Yaku's height and make him flush that cute angry red--Kuroo tables the idea for later. He loves it when Yaku gets angry-flustered.

"You only think it'll be fun 'cuz it was Bo's idea and you both share the same goddamn braincell," he says with a roll of his eyes, but Kuroo spots the fond uptick of his mouth. Kuroo feels butterflies from having put it there.

And hey, that's another thing: Kuroo is a grown-ass man with a _crush_ like he's a twelve year old or something. He and Yaku never really lost touch, even with Yaku all the way in Russia, but these past few months of hanging out in person 'cuz of the Olympics have really shown Kuroo what he's been missing. He's been so thoroughly enjoying the way he can just brush up against Yaku's side now, rile him up a little so that he has an excuse to touch him in a calming manner, sit beside him and press their legs together. It makes Kuroo's heart flutter, especially when Yaku returns all his touches in kind.

He can see it in Yaku's eyes--he wouldn't say no. It's been building up, and Kuroo's decided he's going to make a move within the next few days if Yaku doesn't first.

Yaku breaks him out of his thoughts by moving in and restrapping the velcro on the front of Kuroo's vest. Kuroo knows he did up the straps properly, so Yaku is absolutely just taking the excuse for proximity. Yaku's got a small smile on his face when he looks up to meet Kuroo's gaze, and Kuroo realizes they both know it's just a stupid excuse. Kuroo smiles too, a little helplessly. Yaku pats his chest, and Kuroo's heart beats faster underneath his palm. 

What were they talking about?

Oh, right.

"Me and Bo always have _excellent_ ideas," Kuroo says. He grabs Yaku's hand--the one that had lingered on his chest--and continues, "For example: we should team up."

Bokuto hears this over his own loud and excited chatter with Hinata and turns to point at Kuroo. "Bro, how could you! It's always us two against the world when it comes to lasertag!"

Kuroo laughs. "You should team up with Shrimpy," Kuroo suggests, pointing to where Hinata's bouncing. "That way us two teams can go high _and_ low."

"Great idea, Kuroo-san!" Hinata says excitedly.

Yaku just gives Kuroo a flat look. "When will you get tired of pointing out how short I am?"

"Never, babe," he says with smirk, and he hooks his arm around Yaku's shoulders. Yaku grumbles some more but leans into Kuroo's side, a slight flush on his cheeks. God, Kuroo just wants to kiss him.

Just then, the chatter in the waiting area seems to grow tenfold. A class of sixth graders seems to have walked into the area with a few adults following them. It's just after lunch, so they're probably on a field trip.

Two loud boys near the front of the pack seem to glance at their group of professional volleyball players and then confer every so often, before one of them becomes brave enough to approach. He beelines to Bokuto and Hinata.

"Excuse me! You're Ninja Shouyou, right? And the Bokuto Beam? The volleyball players?"

"Yeah!" Bokuto exclaims, Hinata nodding along.

The boy's friend comes up too with a notebook and his phone clutched in his hand. "And Miya Atsumu! You guys are MSBY!"

Atsumu grins wide and Kuroo thinks that this second kid just saved them from some whining over not being recognized beside Bokuto and Hinata despite having been on the same team. To be fair, Atsumu's bleached blond hair should probably be as recognizable as Bo's black and grey owl style or the highlighter orange that is Hinata's bright head. "You know it!" Atsumu exclaims.

"Wow! We play volleyball too and that one game you guys played against the Adlers a while ago was _legendary_! It's why we started playing!"

"Could you sign this please? And could we take a photo?"

They make nice with the adorable twelve year olds, signing autographs and taking photos before their teacher calls the boys back to their group.

After a few more minutes of waiting, the PA system turns on and the flat tone of a bored employee announces the next round of players should get ready. Their small group of olympians straightens up in their vests and goes into the little prep area where they pick up laserguns and hook then up to their vests. They're followed not a moment later by what seems like a solid half of the class of sixth graders, including the two boys that asked for their autographs.

It's kind of hilarious because Yaku and Hinata aside, the rest of their group all stands at about six feet or taller, towering over all the twelve year olds--and yet these sixth graders are sizing them up with a feral glint in their eyes that makes Kuroo shudder. The first boy that asked for their autographs even has the audacity to point at Bokuto and tell him he's going down, to which Bokuto laughs heartily and exclaims that he's gonna have to catch him first. The boy grins back and it warms Kuroo's heart. Bokuto, ever the positive beam of light even when you're not on his team.

Speaking of teams--

"Yakkun, they're gonna take us apart if we don't come up with a plan and unfortunately the centre target on my vest is at eye level for them," he says, leaning down to speak lowly in Yaku's ear as they adjust their chosen laserguns.

Yaku smirks back at him, the attractive bastard. "Oh, what's this? A tall person problem?"

" _Yakkun_ ," Kuroo whines, "don't you wanna win? I'll have your back if you have my front. I can see over your head, it'll be convenient."

He gets rolled eyes and a whack to the vest for the subtle height dig. "What do I get if I help you?" Yaku asks.

"Bragging rights?"

"Not good enough."

Kuroo bites his lip. "How 'bout dinner?" 

Yaku pauses and looks up to squint suspiciously at Kuroo. Kuroo looks back and tries not to blush as he waits out what is in reality probably three seconds, but feels like an eternity. The sounds of enthusiastic sixth graders and even more enthusiastic volleyball players fade to the background as Yaku draws slightly closer into Kuroo's space. It's only a little, but Kuroo is highly aware of every inch of empty space that separates them.

Finally, Yaku quirks his lips up and he knocks the tip of his lasergun against the light-up target on the front of Kuroo's chest. Kuroo's lungs expand as air rushes back in and he wonders when he stopped breathing. "Fine," Yaku says, "I'll cover your front, and you can buy me dinner if we make the top five."

Kuroo feels a grin overtake his face without any conscious input from him. He wracks his brain for any pick-up line or joke that has to do with targets on his chest and his heart and whatever, but all he finds is anticipation and imagined images and feelings, ideas of sitting across a table from Yaku with an anxious-excited look in both their eyes from knowing this is really a date, playing footsie under the table, leaning in to read the menu from over Yaku's shoulder, brushing his hand and then taking it if they go for a walk after dinner, lacing their fingers, Yaku's lashes fluttering closed as he leans down to kiss Yaku on his cheek--on his _mouth_ \--

"Fuck, Yakkun, that's some of the best motivation I've ever had."

Yaku smiles, his cheeks turning pink but his expression extremely pleased, and turns to face the employee that's going over the rules one more time, in case anyone wasn't listening all the other times they went through the rules and can't read the huge sign detailing the rules by the door.

When that's done, the door opens without further ceremony and everyone rushes inside, splitting apart to fend for themselves or with a partner in what is a moment of utter chaos and excited yelling. They have five minutes to get themselves situated somewhere, and then twenty five more minutes to shoot lasers at each other until the timer goes.

Yaku immediately grabs Kuroo's hand and pulls him to the far corner where there seems to be a lot of tall features with window-sized holes in it. Kuroo squeezes Yaku's hand and takes a moment to be sappy (Yaku's hand is warm, rough, small compared to Kuroo's, very sure in its actions, very perfect holding his) and then looks around. The whole arena is pretty big, and lit with blacklight to make everything glow and be that much more confusing. There's fog coming from the corners that Kuroo knows will make the lasers more visible. Yaku guides him underneath what seems like a bridge, and he tugs back so he can slow down and memorize the area. Yaku looks at him questioningly.

"I think the staircase for the bridge is over there," he says quietly, pointing with his gun. "In case we want higher ground later." He spots two children coming the opposite way and he eyes them warily but they pass and continue on.

Yaku nods and then they continue on too, reaching the place Yaku was heading just before the announcer on the PA system says they have one minute before boot up.

Kuroo leans into an alcove, wraps his arms around Yaku's shoulders and pulls the shorter man in to lean back on his chest because Kuroo thinks he's allowed to do that now. Yaku does actually allow it and seems to get comfortable for the thirty-odd seconds they have left before the action starts. The announcer is counting down the seconds.

"Just to be clear, we _are_ gonna be moving instead of camping, right?" Kuroo asks.

Yaku scoffs, and Kuroo can imagine his exact expression even though all he can see is the top of the back of Yaku's head. "Who do you take me for? Of course."

Kuroo snorts and resists the urge to kiss him on the head. "Of course."

The announcer counts down to one and then says "Go!" Their lasergear starts to make booting up noises, and Yaku straightens up and takes his weight off Kuroo (he will be missed). He sees the targets on Yaku's vest light up and knows his own have just done the same.

For all that Yaku was grumbling earlier, the grin he has on his face when he turns to face Kuroo is nothing short of childish delight and anticipation. Kuroo feels the adrenaline rush through his veins.

It's been almost a decade since they've been on a team together in any real capacity, but when they lock eyes, Kuroo knows nothing's changed. It's simple muscle memory, really--hundreds of games preluded by this electric eye contact, this raring for a well-played match that they know they both share deep in their bones. "Game time," Kuroo and Yaku say at once, like they did before every game for three years straight, and now it's fucking _on_.

They turn the corner and immediately run into a gaggle of uncoordinated children. They aim for the kids' vests and they move before the fifteen second waiting period is over and the kids can take revenge. They pass through a small hallway and sees a shock of bleached blond hair pass in the other direction through a large hole in the wall. Kuroo takes immense pleasure in sticking his body through the hole, successfully tagging Atsumu's back target, and slipping away to the sounds of Atsumu's confused curses.

In front of him Yaku turns the corner and then yelps as three more kids come rushing at them yelling. Both their vests make the sad wooshing noises that mean they're down for fifteen seconds and they use that time to get away from the children.

Kuroo hears familiar laughter from somewhere up high and turns to see Bokuto and Hinata on the bridge looking for all the world like kings of the fucking lasertag kingdom. Kuroo rolls his eyes even as he laughs, and Yaku snickers. Their vests boot back up, and without speaking, they both aim up and manage to tag both Bo and Hinata, high five, and move on.

They both seem to be doing pretty well in that they seem to tag more people than they get tagged themselves. The kids prove to be somewhat overwhelming because they always seem to come out of nowhere and where there's one, there always ends up being like four more. They make it to the staircase for the bridge and get ambushed by Atsumu and Aran, who seem to have teamed up too at some point, and they take their fifteen second reboot period to rush across the bridge--a good thing because the second they step onto the bridge, there are at least five lasers pointing at them from kids down below that were in the area.

On the other side of the bridge is a lookout area that feels too exposed--all the higher ground in this playing field unfortunately turned out that way, but in hindsight they probably didn't want to encourage camping when each game only lasts a half hour. They stumble into a set of walls made of angled mirrors with cutout spaces in between. They can hear other people walking around the area, muffled steps from the other side of the mirror walls. The PA system goes off and announces they've only got five minutes left. Yaku catches his eye and raises his eyebrows and Kuroo grins: this was going to be _fun_.

Before he can properly finish that thought, Hinata comes barrelling from around a mirror wall with his lasergun pointed at them. Yaku dives like he's going for a flying receive and manages to somehow tag Hinata's chest target first. Kuroo immediately turns to look for Bo and finds him running almost full-tilt from Kuroo's left, lasergun ready to go. Kuroo yelps and aims wildly at a mirror, watches the laser reflect and get a lucky shot off Bokuto's shoulder target.

He isn't able to process how lucky that shot is before Yaku, already back on his feet, grabs Kuroo's vest and pulls him into the small maze of mirrors yelling "Run!"

Hinata's and Bokuto's vests are still rebooting but they give chase. Everyone's laughing as they pass mirror after mirror, sometimes making hard turns to accomodate the weird angles, and they seem to have lucked out some more in that there are no wayward twelve year olds or Inarizaki alumni in their way as they continue running from Hinata and Bokuto.

The fifteen seconds are up and Kuroo turns to peek behind him only to find that only Hinata is still chasing them with a determined look on his face, his mouth tilted up in a challenging smile that comes off distinctly menacing. This kid is scary when he gets competitive. Always has been and probably always will be.

Yaku stops abruptly and Kuroo only _just_ manages to not topple right over him.

"What the fu--oh." Bokuto stands in front of them with the widest, most shit-eating grin Kuroo's seen from him in a while and Kuroo instinctively clutches at Yaku's shoulder, feeling like he could use the support.

Bo hoists his lasergun up and points it right at Yaku's chest target, his golden eyes glinting wild under the blacklight. "Hey, hey, hey!" he exclaims, his signature phrase all of a sudden feeling somewhat threatening.

When Kuroo turns to look back, Hinata's also pointing his lasergun at Kuroo's back target, making the face he makes after he spikes a ball unmarked and gets the point.

"Hey now," Kuroo says carefully, raising his hands in surrender and turning to fully face Hinata. This is _great_. He is _living_ for this drama right now. "You don't have to do this. We can talk about it."

"Well--" Bokuto starts, no doubt to dramatically ham it up alongside Kuroo 'cuz he's a good bro like that.

Yaku speaks over him though. "Talking is overrated," he announces, and apparently mercilessly tags Bokuto, if Bo's pouty sounds of protest and wooshing vest are anything to go by.

The second Yaku speaks, Kuroo lowers his hands and tags Shrimpy too, and like a well-oiled machine, Yaku and Kuroo both run past Bokuto and turn a corner. Bokuto and Hinata seem too stunned by the sudden turn of events to remember to follow them, which suits Kuroo just fine.

More than fine, actually. Kuroo laughs as he jogs after Yaku, feeling care-free in a way he hasn't in a long time. "Yakkun, that was _amazing_! Your one-liner was incredible! The _drama_ , oh my god!"

Yaku laughs too, loud and bright with eyes full of mirth as he looks back at Kuroo, and Kuroo is struck again with how much he'd very much like to kiss him.

Yaku seems to catch the expression, because he slows down to pull Kuroo into a corner and Kuroo finds himself with his back against the wall, Yaku pressing him into it with his whole body and god, fuck, why did they have these stupid lasertag vests in between them. They're both breathing hard from running and laughing, and Kuroo wishes he could feel Yaku's chest expanding against his own. Yaku stands between Kuroo's parted legs, his free hand against the wall by Kuroo's elbow, and he's looking up with an expression Kuroo can't describe as anything else but enticing.

The PA voice says there's only a minute left to the game, but Yaku's tongue darts out to wet his bottom lip and Kuroo immediately loses awareness of anything that isn't the man in front of him.

"The drama, huh?" Yaku muses, almost to himself, a smirk playing on his lips.

Before Kuroo can question what he means, Yaku's on his toes and pressing his mouth to Kuroo's. His lips are a little dry, but they're warm, the kiss firm and yet somehow giving, like Yaku himself. Kuroo leans into it right away, his free hand coming up to clutch at Yaku's hip as he feels more of Yaku's weight press all along his body, and he takes a second to really _hate_ the lasertag vests because they're stupidly bulky and in the fucking way of Yaku's actual wonderful body, so close and yet so far, and they're making stupidly loud and _annoying_ wooshing noises that are interrupting the _mood_ , and--

Wait.

Kuroo processes the sounds of a rebooting lasertag vest at the same time Yaku pulls back from their kiss and whispers against Kuroo's lips, "I expect you to buy me dessert too, Tersurou," and then he's pulling away completely.

Kuroo's vest is blinking and making the fifteen second rebooting noises but Yaku's vest is still perfectly lit up, and he registers that Yaku _just fucking shot him_ right as the announcer counts down from three to two to one and calls for the end of the game.

He's speechless as he watches Yaku's vest power down, and when his gaze meanders back up to Yaku's face, he finds an expression that's smug and teasing and amused and--and _happy_ , all at once. There's still mirth in his eyes, and Kuroo's stomach swoops.

"How's that for drama?" Yaku asks, a little coy, a lot proud of himself.

"Is it too early to ask you to marry me?" Kuroo blurts back.

He has the pleasure of watching Yaku's entire face turn pink as his eyes widen in surprise, and he opens and closes his mouth a few times before settling on a mumbled, "Let's just get that dinner first."

Kuroo pouts but doesn't whine, only because Yaku takes the opportunity to grab his hand again and laces their fingers together. "Don't worry," Kuroo says as they make their way back to the entrance of the lasertag arena, "I won't forget about dessert."

Yaku doesn't blush any brighter, but Kuroo suspects it's because he's already at his blushing capacity.

They get back to the area where they have to put away the laserguns and find out they were the last ones out of the arena. Aran, closest to the door, gives them a knowing look but doesn't say anything else before Bokuto and Hinata descend upon them, yelling and wailing in equal parts about their anticlimactic showdown in the mirror maze, and they let go of each others' hands.

They put away the laserguns and shrug out of their lasertag vests, and all Kuroo wants to do is redo their kiss but this time without the goddamn vests. Instead, he waits patiently for the results of their game while the next group of sixth graders get ready to go into the arena. He also absentmindedly plays with the corner of Yaku's sleeve while he gives Atsumu as much shit as he can for having caught him unaware through a hole in the wall at the start of the game.

The employee behind the counter announces that the results are in and being printed, but the top five will be on the TV screen in a few seconds. Kuroo watches the screen with bated breath, and when it changes, he lets it out in a big sigh even as Yaku lets out a delighted whoop.

Kuroo didn't place but Yaku's name is up there in the fifth slot. Surprisingly, Aran and Atsumu are first and second respectively, and some random kids are third and fourth--Kuroo briefly wonders if it was the MSBY fans from earlier. 

Bokuto and Hinata are being dramatically sad about not placing in the top five. Atsumu's loudly put out that Aran somehow pulled ahead, and Aran's got his phone out, probably to give Atsumu more shit about placing second instead of first at lasertag. When Atsumu whips out his own phone to take a selfie of his exaggeratedly frowny pout while Aran makes a peace sign in the background, Kuroo hopes they've somehow involved the onigiri twin and are now _both_ teasing Atsumu for being second. 

Kuroo knows he's making his own weird bummed out frowny face 'cuz Yaku's laughing at him, but then he wraps an arm around Kuroo's waist and discreetly pecks him on the cheek. It makes Kuroo smile in a way he knows will become reflex.

"I was planning on suggesting a consolation dinner if neither one of us made it," Yaku confesses.

"Allow me to turn this dinner and dessert into a congratulations for making the top five then," Kuroo suggests rather magnanimously.

Yaku shakes his head but he never stops smiling. Kuroo may not have made the top five but he _absolutely_ won this afternoon.

When the printed results come out, they find that Bokuto and Hinata didn't do too poorly but they didn't place because they got tagged too many times to balance out their hit numbers.

It also turns out that Kuroo placed sixth, just narrowly missing the top five. The differences between his and Yaku's numbers are so negligible, it becomes obvious to them both that what really put Yaku first was when he tagged Kuroo while they were kissing. Yaku laughs again at this, finding it hilarious that his drama paid off, but Kuroo can't even pretend to be butthurt about it when the the trade-off was getting pinned to the wall and kissed.

The pub that night with their old teammates and rivals is a blast, and the dinner and dessert that Kuroo and Yaku go for the next night proves to be the first of many, even with everything else going on in their lives.

The Olympics happen (and Kuroo gets a fun and very memorable peek into the athlete dorms), some long distance pining occurs when Yaku heads back to Russia, Yaku announces he's coming back home to accept a libero position on a Japanese team near the end of the year and Kuroo pretends he doesn't cry at the prospect of seeing his boyfriend every night. Yaku moves in even though they just started dating because they've also known each other for over a decade, they blissfully spend birthdays and Christmas and New Years and Valentines together, and when it comes time for their first anniversary?

Well.

Kuroo Tetsurou is a grown-ass man. He's twenty eight, over six feet, has an actual well-playing job at the Japanese Volleyball Association. He's been over the drinking age for a while now and he even shares an apartment with his boyfriend.

He is also strapping said boyfriend into a lasertag vest with glee to rival a six year old.

"We're grown-ass fucking men," Yaku says with a fond roll of his eyes. "I can put on my own vest, thank you."

"Aw, but we're being cute Mori," Kuroo replies with a pout he knows won't actually work. He tries anyways.

Yaku rolls his eyes _again_ but does actually relent and allows Kuroo to do up the velcro on his lasertag vest before stepping into Kuroo's space to return the favour. He restraps the velcro on the front like three times just to have an excuse to remain standing close, and Kuroo takes the opportunity to kiss him on the forehead 'cuz he can and the novelty still hasn't worn off. It's only been a year, but he honestly doesn't think it ever will, and the thought makes him smile.

They banter and flirt while they wait to get called into the area where they get to pick out and hook up the laserguns to their vests, and when they finish, Yaku takes his hand and laces their fingers.

"So we're teaming up, right?" Yaku asks.

"You know it, babe," Kuroo replies.

They enter the arena and walk to the back, waiting out the five minute grace period by leaning against each other and the wall. At the one minute mark, Kuroo ducks in to kiss Yaku on the cheek, and then on the mouth, and then steals one more for good luck 'cuz he's a sap. Yaku chases him for one more 'one more' (because, as Kuroo has come to find out and take immense delight from, Yaku is _also_ a sap, even though he won't readily admit it) and then he pulls back in time for the announcer to count down to one and say "Go!"

They hoist up their laserguns and lock eyes as their vests light up, and Kuroo feels it: the rush of adrenaline, the thrum of excitement, the powerful feeling made of home and love and warmth and trust that Yaku brings to Kuroo, every single time. They're on the same team again--have been for the whole year, and will be for the rest of their lives if Kuroo has anything to say about it. It already feels so natural to have Yaku beside him in everything he does.

Being with Yaku has become simple muscle memory. The thought is as electric as the eye contact they're making now.

"Game time," they say at once.

It is fucking _on_.


End file.
